Another World
by Browny2
Summary: Rose is a neurosurgeon in a London hospital who's taking care of a comatose John Doe. Is there more to him than meets the eye? Will he remember who he is when he finally wakes up? (AU Reunion fic: RosexTen)
1. Waking Up

Hi everyone, first of all thanks for giving this story a chance! This is my first story in the Doctor Who-verse and it's the first story I've written in six years. Lot's of firsts for me today. I would be very grateful if you left a review, so that I can learn. :)

Let's get this show on the road, shall we? I hope you like it and enjoy!

* * *

"Oh John, today has been hell. Between my mother, Mickey, Jake, especially Jack, and the hospital, I can't even hear myself think. I'm so glad you're here, and I don't mean that I'm glad that you're in the hospital, I just mean that it's nice to be able to talk to someone, you know? Without them having an opinion about everything? Just a listening ear. I've missed that since my granddad died, he was the one who always seemed to know when I needed to just talk, without a response of any kind. You're the first person to get me to tell you everything, it's weird, you're not even awake and still I feel like you understand. Maybe I'm just going a bit mad. I suppose it should be expected with my life, I'm here in this hospital nearly 24/7. When I'm not I'm surrounded by Jake and Jack, my roommates. Jake's parents don't accept him being gay and he had to move out, into my apartment no less because he's between jobs at the moment, and Jack's job doesn't pay enough to support them so he moved in too. My apartment may as well be theirs now, since they are home more than I am. Then there's Mickey, who's head over heels in love with doctor Martha Jones, one of my best friends at the hospital. He is always texting me to ask whether Dr. Jones is off, or when she is arriving. I don't know why he can't just ask her out, that seems to be too simple. And if all that is not enough, my mum is always nagging on about how I'm still not married at 26 and that she really wants grandchildren."

At that moment John's fingers twitched, but this went unnoticed by the beautiful blonde sitting in the chair across from him. John Doe, that was the name on his bracelet, had been in the hospital for 3 months. In that time the nurses and doctors had all tried to figure out something about him, but they couldn't. He'd been found after the alien attack on London, but he didn't have anything on him except for his clothes, a long trench coat, some weird kind of screwdriver that didn't seem to fit anything and a simple key. He'd had a head wound and had been rushed to the hospital. Doctor Rose Tyler, one of the best neurosurgeons in the country had treated him and she was sure he was going to be alright. She just didn't know when.

Over the last three months she'd been checking on him regularly, seeing if there was any change. In that time she'd also grown quite fond of him. He had this shaggy brown hair, that even after laying down for all this time still stuck out in every which way and she thought it was quite sexy. The stubble on his cheeks did nothing to change that, in fact it made him even more attractive in her eyes. She often wondered what he would look like when he awoke. She knew from experience that even though a person could be sexy while sleeping, they could be nothing short of ugly when they finally opened their eyes. But she had a feeling that that wouldn't be the case with John. Because of that and the fact that there was no one visiting him she had been taking her lunchbreak in his room once every week, to keep him company. She never liked it when people had no one to care for them. She thought that was one of the reasons that made her excel at her profession, she genuinely cared about her patients. Other doctors didn't think it was that important, but she did.

So here she was, with her lunch in her lap, sitting in the chair across from his bed, talking about her day. The good things, the bad things. Since she started this she had been a lot more balanced than before. She supposed he must've been some kind of therapist, someone who made you feel at home and open up by simply being there.

Suddenly the monitor started beeping faster. Dr. Tyler went to see what was wrong and when she looked at him she saw his eyes were open. And they were beautiful. They seemed to be looking right into her soul and reading her thoughts. She was so captivated by his eyes that she didn't even notice he was trying to talk. When she felt a hand in hers however, her focus shifted quickly back to him, although, did it really? His hand fit perfectly in hers apparently, and the electric shocks she felt at the contact did nothing but draw her further in. Never before had this happened to her before. She had always been a bit sceptical about love at first sight, but right in this moment she couldn't think of a single argument of why that was.

"Doctor Tyler, are you alright?" was what woke her from her reverie. Nurse Donna Noble was standing next to her and she and John were looking at her a little worriedly. "I heard the monitor and saw that Mr. Doe was awake and thought he could probably use some water."

"Right, of course, no I'm fine. Go ahead, I was just checking on him actually when he woke up" she said, as she quickly extracted her hand from his. She felt a deep chill go through her when she did though and wanted to grab it right back again. She turned to the man whose hand she had just released, albeit reluctantly. "How are you feeling, sir? Are you experiencing any pain? Do you need anything? I am doctor Tyler, I've been treating you. You are at the London Royal Hospital. You were admitted for a head injury, which I operated on, and you have been healing as expected"

"No, just some water would be fine, and I'm fine. I'm not in any pain." He uttered, while he took the water nurse Noble was offering him and took a sip. "Mmmm, that's exactly what I needed, thank you nurse Noble" he exclaimed after looking at her nametag. After that Donna excused herself and left the room. Rose was still a bit shaken up from that weird moment but she got herself together and took het stethoscope. "This may feel a bit cold, so don't be surprised, okay?" and she put it to his hearts. Yes, his hearts, plural. When he was admitted to the hospital that was the first thing they discovered, but Rose had kept the others from calling the authorities, she couldn't bear to see a person become a guinea pig because of her. Afterwards she had checked him over completely – yes, even that part of him – and everything else seemed normal. Although from what she had seen, he had the potential of being excellent in bed, not that anyone else knew that she thought so. She'd taken him on as her patient, even made herself responsible for him when there was no one to claim him.

His hearts sounded fine, so did his breathing. Then she took her little flashlight and checked his responsiveness. Only after determining he was completely awake, and there was no immediate cause for concern she turned to him again, "I am going to ask you some routine questions now. Don't panic if you don't know all the answers, just think and if you don't know we'll continue on to the next one. Is that alright with you?" he nodded.

"Do you know what year it is?" he seemed to concentrate for a second and then he looked straight into her eyes again, unnerving her a little, she had to admit. "We are the twelfth of January in the year 2016 on the third planet from the sun, and it is 02:39pm" Rose nearly dropped her chart, "Umh, well, sir, that is all extremely accurate actually. How did you know that if I may ask?"

"To be honest, Doctor Tyler, I have no idea. I just know. Don't you know that?" She looked at him strangely, "I'm sorry, but I don't, nor does anyone in this hospital without checking. Okay then, next question. What is your name?" about this question he had to really think. She could see his face screw up in concentration and she could also see the moment he gave up, resigned that he couldn't remember. "I don't seem to know. What do you call me?" he asked eventually.

"That's no problem sir, it will come back to you. We call you John Doe. It's a name we give to everyone whose name we don't know."

"How long have I been here? Has anyone come for me?" he asked tentatively. "You've been here for three months, sir. And no, I'm really sorry to tell you this, but no one has come looking for you, nor could we find any relatives to contact. Do you have anyone in mind we could call?"

"No, I don't. I was just hoping that maybe someone had been here, I had these weird dreams while I was… sleeping, like someone was talking to me, so I thought maybe…" his sentence trailed off and Rose could see he was starting to really realise what was going on.

"Yes, someone has been talking to you, me. I have been keeping you company during my lunch hour. I hate to see people alone in here. So I just decided to sit with you a little, I know it sounds weird and unprofessional but I just… it's my job to take care of people, and I take it seriously. Now, the following question may cause you some discomfort, but I really do need to know so I can check for any other possible injuries. I realise how that sounds since you've been here for three months, but you are not like other patients. Do you know what happened to you?"

"Of course, I understand, but how am I different than the other patients?" She decided to indulge him, it's not like she was needed elsewhere for the time being. She had completed three surgeries this morning and the next one was only tomorrow. Obviously she had rounds to complete and patients to see, but for the next hour or so she was free.

"Well, sir, you seem to have two hearts, and before you ask, it's unheard of. That and you could tell the exact date and hour after being in a coma for three months" she said. "Oh," he answered, "and I suppose that no other patients have ever done that either? Okay, those are solid reasons for needing to know then, I suppose. I don't really remember anything though. Nothing, to be fair."

Saying that she was surprised would be lying, but she was however disappointed. She had carefully harboured that tiny sprinkle of hope that he may have remembered something, but alas, he didn't. Nothing to do but wait then, was there? She asked the rest of the questions rather quickly and took her leave, promising to come back soon.

* * *

That evening she slept in the hospital, again. There had been a terrible accident and the hospital had needed all hands on deck. Rose was not one to leave in a crisis, so she had texted Jake and Jack she was staying at work and that she would see them tomorrow. As she was laying there, she thought about John and what he must be going through. She had never been so invested in a patient, of course she'd always been empathic but never had she felt such a connection; not with anyone actually, this was the first time in her life she felt as though she'd found something she never knew she'd missed. She'd also never had this kind of reaction before, not with anyone. Maybe it was because he had those penetrating eyes, that shaggy hair, and even though he was unconscious while she'd been examining him, he did have a nice body, lean and muscular. All those things made for a very attractive man, or at least that's what she thought. She thought about what she had told him when he was sleeping and the fact that, according to what he had said that morning, he may remember them. She wasn't sure how she felt about it, but she stayed surprisingly calm, she felt she could trust him.

Now she was wondering what tomorrow would bring, she hoped she had time to pop into his room. It wasn't everyday she had time for a lunchbreak. She had 2 surgeries planned and she really needed to stay focussed, in one patient she had to remove a tumour, and in the other she had to place a stent. Not the easiest operations, seeing as the tumour was positioned deeply within the brain and in order to place the stent she would have to go deep too. If she was distracted she might as well have signed her patients' death warrants.

During the little while she slept she dreamt about a handsome man, who looked remarkably like her patient, who was only known as 'the Doctor' and with whom she had crazy adventures, visited strange planets, and saved several worlds. When she woke up, she didn't remember anything.

* * *

The next few days went by in a blur, she was so busy she barely slept and when she had a free moment she went to visit her favourite patient. They had developed a friendship and Rose thought his outside fit his inside. He was sweet, kind, funny, and a bit weird. Just as she had hoped and imagined he would be. There was nothing except his weird anatomy to prove he was anything other than human. Since he was awake now, the hospital he was going to release him soon. Rose dreaded that day, she was not ready to let him go. He'd become a part of her life and she didn't want that to go away.

"If you keep standing there like that you might just turn into stone," she heard John's voice, she was leaning against the door of his room, just staring at him, "seriously, you look like you're somewhere far away, I'm I not interesting enough?" he joked.

"Oh you are plenty interesting, believe me," she returned with a wink and her trademark tongue-poking-out-smile, while walking further into his room, "I was thinking about how you will be leaving soon. You're awake now, and everything seems to be fine, so the hospital has no reason to keep you any longer. I know you're memories haven't come back yet, but I'm confident they will. Have you given any thought to what you're going to do when you get out of here?"

"I hadn't given it any thought really. I don't know where I'm from, so I have no idea. I don't even know anyone outside of this hospital really." He said, looking a bit disheartened. "I suppose I'll just have to figure it out though." he continued.

"And I'm sure you will," she interjected, "I can help you if you want? I have some friends outside of this place too, I could them if they would mind getting a new roommate?" she said, looking a bit unsure of herself, "If you want me to, of course!" she added quickly.

"That would mean a lot to me," he said looking at her as though she was his saviour, "I don't know what I would do without you!"

She laughed at that, "You'd be long dead without me!" When she realised what she said her eyes went wide like saucers. "Oh my god! I'm sorry, that came out so wrong!" she kept profusely apologising, it was only after the tenth apology she dared look at him again. He was sitting up in his bed looking like he had the time of his life, the perpetual mirth in his eyes no less bright, "No need to apologise, it's the truth. Donna has told me many times I'm too rude, so I don't mind. Really." he assured her.

That got a very unladylike sound out of her, "Donna has a point you know, if you're going to meet my friends you're going to have to watch it a little, some of them are easily offended. But nevertheless, I will bring by the people I have in mind tomorrow. If that's okay with you?"

"That's more than fine with me, it's not like I have any important business to attend to. I don't even know what my business is…" he looked down at his lap as he said that, but Dr. Tyler had long since figured out that he was not one to wallow in his bad fortune, so as she expected, not a minute later he looked up at her and said "but whatever it is, I'm sure I'm swell at it! Fantastic even, I cannot imagine anyone being better at what it is I'm good at!"

"Now don't go telling that to anyone else, you hear. That's what people consider rude," she told him. At that moment her pager went off. "Dang, looks like they need me, but think about what you're going to do okay, if you even want a roommate, or if you'd rather live alone, I can help with that too." Before he could react she'd already turned and left.

Later Rose would admonish herself for not telling him she was going to introduce him to her roommates, and that he would actually live in her apartment if he took the offer. She told herself she'd just forgotten, but in all reality she had quite deliberately kept that detail from him. If he said no then, at least she knew it wasn't because of her.

* * *

One day later, or more precisely: 22 hours, 35 minutes and 16 seconds, she appeared in his room with two guys. One strikingly handsome with those deep blue eyes and jet black hair – who was damn sexy, even John had to admit that – and the other looked a little like the typical American boy next door – yes, even English guys can have that look he thought – with his youthful looks and dirty blond hair. "Hello there, I'm John… or at least that's what they call me 'round here. Who're you?" he started, "I know that's a very open question, you could for instance start with your name and then continue on to tell me about yourself, who you are to my Rose… oh my, I meant Dr. Tyler of course, nothing about her is mine, obviously. Although I wouldn't mind that, she is after all very pretty and not at all unsweet, on the contrary even she's one of the most lovable people around here, and I can tell you, I know many, if not all,"

"Uhm, John, I think it best you stop talking now," Rose interrupted his endless monologue, "before you embarrass yourself." After a second she added "Any further." She was used to his ramblings, the day after he had woken up is when it first happened, and now after a while she started to see it as a lovable quirk than anything else, it was just him.

John started, looking properly flustered, "Right, sorry, I do that sometimes, go ahead!" He waved his hand in a gesture to continue. Rose took the lead again. "As I told you I would yesterday, I brought two friends with me. I explained to them your situation and they understand completely and are willing to help. Meet Captain Jack Harkness and his boyfriend Jake Simmonds."

It hadn't gone over quite as simple as Rose was explaining it though. Jake had said that space was already sparse in her little flat and that they really did need their space, and that's not even taking into account that they knew nearly nothing about this man, that he could be a serial killer without even realising it, and that he could just wake up one day and decide to kill them – Rose was sure it had more to do with Jack and his perpetual flirting with anything that walks, than it had with John. As expected, the Captain had been more receptive to the idea of a new male roommate, and after a lot of coaxing from both him and Rose, Jake had eventually given in. So here they were, standing next to their soon-to-be new roommate, who was for the moment only known as John Doe.

Jack stepped forward and extended his hand, "Hi, I'm Jack as you already know. I'm very happy to meet you and I'm looking forward to getting to know you," he said with an American accent, the ever-present flirtatious smile never fading from his face. Rose pushed Jake slightly forward who then also stuck out his hand to shake John's waiting one. "Nice to meet you." He uttered, looking every bit like a little kid being forced to share his candy. "Now that we've all met, what do you say John, are you going to move in with these two idiots?" Rose exclaimed, perhaps a little bit too enthusiastic.


	2. Discoveries

**Hi everyone, so I'm back with the second chapter. I hope you enjoy it, and if you want to, leave a review (makes me write faster ;) )**

* * *

Two days after meeting his roommates to-be, John had been cleared to leave the hospital and he was now putting on his own clothes. He heard a soft cough behind him and turned around to see Rose standing there. "Hi, there's something different about you today. What is it? Oh I see it, you're not wearing lab coat! Well I have to say you're looking exceptionally nice today, and by that I do not mean that you don't look nice on other days, just that today you're looking even better. Weeeeeell I say better, but you always look good…", she cut him off; "Thank you John, that's nice of you to say. I have to admit you're not looking too bad yourself!" She was very pleasantly surprised by what the brown pinstriped suit did for his body.

"Oooh, look, I found something! Rose come look!" He called, showing her the weird looking screwdriver. "That's yours, it was in your pocket when you were found. Do you remember what it is?" He was looking at it intently, like the secret of the world lay inside it. After about 2 minutes he straightened up, looked at her and said: "Nope, I have no idea what it is, or what it does." And he put it back into the pocket he had found it in. "Now Rose, tell me, why are you here? Is it time already?"

"Yes, it's time to leave. Couldn't let you go without saying goodbye, now could I?" and she smiled her trademark smile again. He could just imagine what he would do to that tongue if he ever got the chance. Then it dawned on him that he might not see her everyday anymore. He was going to miss her, she had become a fixture in his life, the thing he looked forward to everyday. Now he wasn't going to have that anymore. He decided not to dwell on it, he would still see her every now and then, what more could he hope for? "Of course not!" Then he realised he didn't know why she wasn't in her normal doctor's outfit. "Rose, why are not wearing your normal clothes? Not that I don't like this outfit, mind you, but…" Rose was laughing at him. "Why are you laughing?"

"Because John, I've been here all of 5 minutes and you've already rattled on about my outfit twice now. I think I'll change clothes more often" and there was that cute little tip of her tongue again, poking out at him from between her teeth as she smiled. "I'm not wearing my usual outfit because I'm not here for work. I'm here to take you home."

His jaw nearly hit the floor. "Home? You mean not to Jack and Jake's place?" he asked, his voice an octave higher than normal. "Caught that, did you? I may have forgotten to mention that they're my roommates and that you'll be living at my place from now on… does that change things for you?" She asked suddenly shy and unsure of herself, unconsciously biting her lip.

He walked over the her and took her chin in his hand, pulling her lip free and looking intently into her eyes, and said, "that's the best news I've heard all day. Rose, we're going to be roomies! We can talk every day, not that we don't now, but that will be so much cooler, because we live together! And then you can tell me about your day every day and it will all be news to me because I won't have caught anything in the halls!" She'd never seen him smile so brightly.

"Well then milady, shall we leave this dreadful place?" Rose laughed at his antics and ignored the twinkle of recognition she felt. "We shall my lord," and he grabbed his arm. Together they walked out of the room, into the next part of their lives.

When they entered her flat he immediately began examining everything around him. He picked up every item he could find and turned it over at least twice before putting it down and moving on to the next item. This went on until he had touched nearly every single thing she owned. Suddenly she heard his tell-tale 'ooh', and she went over to see what he had found. When she saw what he was holding though, she instantly tried to take it from him but he was too fast. "Weren't you a wee princess twenty years ago, so cute!" he cooed. He was holding a picture from when she was 6 years old, she'd been into princesses at the time and had just received a real princess dress with tiara and all. To finish she had donned herself perfect pink cheeks and blue eyeshadow. Finally she succeeded in taking the picture from him and ran to hide it somewhere else, right now she was really regretting not having left it at her mother's. "Rose! Give it back, I love it! I won't show anyone, pinkie swear!", "Sorry not happening John."

"So, do you want to see the rest of the apartment now?" she came back into the room. "Why, yes, that would be nice. Are you going to show me your room?" while he said that his eyes went wide with delight, again. "You'd like that wouldn't you?" was her only reply. She didn't really think she would mind either, but is was one thing for him to find it on his own, it was a whole other thing if she actually invited him in. She wasn't planning on opening that can of worms just yet, who knew what would happen now that they actually lived together. That thought startled her a little, they were really doing this. He was moving into her place and they'd only known one another for what, 9 days since he wasn't awake for the first 3 months of their time together? Not a very long time was it? She was just starting to wonder why she proposed it at all when she caught him looking at her, and she knew exactly why. He could look at het like she was his world, and in a way she was… but she tried not to dwell on that.

"Rose, I can't thank you enough for what you're doing for me, you know? I wish I remembered what I'm good at, then at least I could pay you back in some way." Wrapping her hands around his arm she pulled him into a hug. "it's no problem, really. I'm actually glad you're here. It gives me an excuse to be home more. What with my job, I don't actually come home every day, or week…" he hugged her back, and all felt right in the world. She pulled away, "so your room is right through the hall, the first door on your left. Go ahead, I'll be there in a sec." He gave her a strange look but did as she said anyway. Meanwhile, she went into the kitchen to grab two glasses of water and then went to follow him when her phone went off.

"Hello?"

"Is this Rose Tyler?" asked a voice she didn't recognise.

"Yes, this is her. Can I help you?"

"I'm afraid we have some bad news for you. Is there someone with you?"

By this time John had been wondering what took her so long and stuck his head out of his room into the hall. She beckoned him closer and went to sit on her sofa. He came to sit next to her.

"Yes, there is. Who are you?"

"I'm a representative of your dad's. My name is Harriet Jones." Came the voice through the phone.

"You're trying to scam the wrong person Ms Jones, my dad died 25 years ago. No one is going to tell me otherwise. I've been to his grave and I saw the pictures of his accident. I would prefer it if you didn't call me again." And she hung up.

John sat there, watching her carefully. "What was that all about?" he asked her. "Some woman was claiming to know my dad. But that's impossible, isn't it? He died when I was a baby." She replied, and even if she didn't want to admit it, sounding a bit shaken. "I'm sure it was nothing," he reassured her and pulled her into another hug. "but if you need to talk, I'm here." Then he took her hand and pulled her up. "I believe you were showing me my room, Dr. Tyler?" He continued holding her hand while he walked over to his room. She smiled and said, "Of course. As you can see, it's not much. But if you want it, it's yours.", "Obviously I want it, I mean it's perfect! Look, there's a door, a little wardrobe and even a bed. And you're just in the other room. What more could I possibly need?"

Two days after John had officially moved in it already felt like he had always been living there. Jack had been quite taken by him, much to the chagrin of Jake. They had become fast friends, much like Rose and John, only Jake wasn't quite ready to let him into his life. During the two days, they had all discovered some things about their new roommate, that may or may not have been significant. First Jack had figured out that he was incredibly smart, like unheard of smart. Jake had then subsequently been so annoyed that he had broken his laptop, accidentally of course. John had been all too happy to help fix it and he had done so within 6 minutes, which Jack was sure was a new record!

"So, John," started Jack, "you really don't remember anything from before?" John, who was taken by surprise a little, reacted: "No, I don't. You don't believe me do you? Why would I be here if I did?" Jack smiled a little, "Now there's a rather simple answer to your question, don't you think? It starts with an R and rhymes with 'nose'…"

"So, you're insinuating I'm only here because of Rose. As much as I would like that to be true, I really don't know anything, and before you ask, it does irritate me to no end! I've been trying to figure out how to get my memories back but I just can't." John had begun to run his hand through his hair, pulling it every now and then making it stand on end rather sexily. At least, that's what Jack thought, and he figured Rose would think so too.

"Well then, John, let's get cracking. I'm sure we can find some clues as to your former life. Rose told me where you were found, let's go back there and see if we can get you to remember anything, 'right? Also, wasn't there a key in your belongings?"

"Right, I like that plan. Let's do it." Then he looked down at himself and began searching through his pockets. After some time he pulled out a simple key. "Here's the key." Then he looked at Jack a little strangely, "Are your pocket bigger on the inside too?" The Captain was so perplexed by that question that he couldn't immediately form a response. "Right," John continued, "I'll take that as a no." Then he turned and walked out the front door, leaving Jack to follow.

"Here we are, this is where you were found, according to Rose." Said Jack. They were in Peckham, right next to an old Police Call Box." John looked around him, and his eyes rested on the box. He felt like there was something about it that was calling to him. "John, are you remembering anything?" Not gracing the Captain with a response John strode over to it with a determined look in his eyes. He took the key out of his pocket and tried to put it in the hole; it fit like a glove, and after some jiggling the door opened up to reveal… nothing. "I'm sorry mate," John felt Jack's hand on his shoulder, "there doesn't seem to be anything special about it, but at least we know it's yours right?", John regarded him. "This can't be it." He said, "There has to be more to it! There has to be!" He locked the door again and started walking back to the underground, not noticing the little pulse of light that was emitted by the, what he thought was an insignificant blue police box. By the time they made it back to the apartment Rose had finished her work day and was looking a little gloomy. John went to her, "What's wrong?", she smiled a little, "Nothing, just a tough day at work, that's all. But I could use some cheering up, what do you say, want to go and get some chips with me?" John enthusiastically nodded his head and off they went.

"So tell me, what happened today that's got you so down? I don't like it when you're sad." He told her as they were sitting down at a corner booth in a little chippy "I'm not sure I want to talk about it. Let's find another subject, yeah? Like, what did you do today? Jack texted me you went to Peckham, did you know I grew up there? My mum still lives there." She said as she dipped her chip into some vinegar. He perked up at that, "Oh why didn't he tell me! I could've seen some more little Rose photo's!" He exclaimed. She laughed at that. "Now there's that smile I missed today" he told her sweetly, gazing into her eyes. "Jack also said you had some success? You find what your key's for?" that made him look down again. "Yes, well, it didn't really help any did it." He almost snapped at her. "Did you go inside, or did you just open and close the door?" That made him look at her again. "Uhm, well, I didn't actually set my foot inside, but I looked and there was nothing special about it." John, especially you should know that things aren't always as they seem, what with your pocket, and your… special anatomy." She admonished him. "Let's go back there, yeah? And after that we'll go and visit my mum, alright? She's been nagging for me to visit her anyway."

After paying the bill he took her hand and said "Run!", together they ran all the way to the entrance of the Underground. "Now what was that for?" she said a little breathlessly as she let go of his hand. "Dunno, I just felt like it. But it was fun wasn't it?" he looked so happy, like a child at Christmas. She smiled softly at him. "Uhu, that it was." She conceded.

When they arrived at their stop he was looking a little discouraged again. She put her hand on his arm, "Hey, why are you looking so sad all of a sudden?", "I'm just not sure I want to be disappointed again you know? I felt something when I was near the Box, but I couldn't figure out what is was, and going there now and proving that there isn't anything that can help me remember me… I don't know if I can handle it." He said.

Finally they could see the blue box and this time is wasn't only John who felt something, Rose too felt it. "There has to be something about that box, because I feel it too. Come on, let's go check it out!" she grabbed his hand and ran to the door. He took his key out and inserted it a second time that day. The door flew open, and just like the first time, there inside it but an old telephone. Before he had time to close the door again Rose had grabbed his hand and bounded inside. Neither of them had expected to see what they saw. It was an incredibly wide room with a big console in the middle. "uhm, John, are you seeing what I'm seeing?" Rose uttered in awe. "Yes, Rose, the inside appears to be bigger than the outside, not unlike my pockets. Rose, you are amazing! Fantastic even! I never would have got here without you. Thank you." The last part he said silently, looking at her like she meant the world to him. She wetted her lips under his gaze and saw his eyes flicker to them. He leaned infinitesimally closer to her, and then a little more. Just as her breath hitched in her throat he exclaimed "Rose, this is probably all mine! I have the key, my pockets are bigger on the inside too and I have this weird screwdriver I can't make sense of!" Rose, who was a little disoriented and not even a little bit disappointed, not that she would admit that, looked on as he took the item out of his pocket and started playing with it again.

Suddenly there was a beep on the other side of the room. Quickly the two of them hurried over and saw a screen… with a picture of John's face on it. After about two seconds of staring at it, it suddenly began moving and talking. Clearly it was some kind of film.

"Hello there, how are you? You're probably a little confused as you're seeing your own face talking to you. Well, first things first. I'm the Doctor, or you are the Doctor, seeing as we're both the same person. I can already hear you think Doctor who? Exactly! Let's move on, shall we."

John interjected, "I'm the Doctor, hmmm, I like that! What do you think Rose?" he looked at her. "I suppose it will do." She said teasingly

The film continued; "You're wondering why you can't remember anything. Well it's quite simple really, I just blocked a few synapses here and there and then I prevented my, your, brain from forming new memories. So we will never actually remember what exactly happened that day. Now why did I do that? Easy enough answer: I needed you to meet someone. She was very important to me once upon a time. We had some adventures say… 5 or 6 years ago, and I lost her. Did I tell you yet? You're a Time Lord, from the planet Gallifrey and you are the last of your kind. Anyway, as I was saying I illegally rewrote time – I know it's against the law but I'm the only one left so there's no one to punish me. Yes, time can be rewritten. The process though, is long and difficult and once you get your memories back you will remember it, so I'm not going to explain it all to you. So, I rewrote time. By the way, you're standing in the Tardis right now, don't tell her, but she is the best sentient ship in all the universe, she actually helped me quite a lot. The Tardis is not only a spaceship, she can travel through time too! Now, onto more important business, have you met Rose Tyler yet? You should've, I made sure to get an injury apt to land you in her care."

John, or the Doctor, felt Rose startle at the mention of her name but before he could say anything the film went on.

"I know you want your memories back, but the only way to do that is to make new ones, I made sure of that. So go on, live your life. Hang out with Rose Tyler, or do a little more" and he winked salaciously," When you get back here you can go back in time and fix the things you couldn't now. One last thing, your biology is superior to the humans', so normally you don't actually need to sleep every night." Before they could do anything, the screen went black and the lights went out.

"Well, that was interesting," said Rose looking at him perplexed. "You could say that," he countered. "well you heard him, I need to live my life, preferably with you. Do you mind that?" Rose looked deep in thought for a moment. "I don't think I do at all, and since you rewrote time for me, I don't think I can make myself send you away." She looked at him "and anyway, if I do you might never get your memories back. We wouldn't want that now would we?" she said, with her trademark smile.

Taking his hand she said: "Let's go home," and then she added, "Doctor." Forgetting all about their visit to her mum. He smiled that smile that made her feel just a little bit warmer on the inside and said: "Allons-y!" and then added, "Ooh I like that, remind me to say that more often!" and off they went.


End file.
